tv
Best of 2017: TVSunday, 31 December 2017
Young people will laugh incredulously when you tell them that once upon a time, there was only one television channel in Britain. Now we've lost count, and as even the Queen pointed out in her Christmas broadcast, many of her subjects would now be watching her (no doubt hoping for a walk-on by Meghan Markle) on phones or iPads. Read more... |
Spiral, Series 6, BBC Four review - grime pays in the City of LightSunday, 31 December 2017
We’ve seen some “interesting” series filling BBC Four’s celebrated Saturday evening slot recently, which if nothing else have prompted plenty of below-the-line discussion. Happily, we can now turn our backs on all that and hail the return of the ace Paris-based French cop show Spiral. Read more... |
Eric, Ernie and Me, BBC Four review - he brought them sunshineSaturday, 30 December 2017
To misquote Marx (Karl, not Groucho), comedy repeats itself, the first time as farce, the second time as a tragedy. The early days of broadcasting bred comedians whose work lives on in the nation’s marrow. But being Frankie Howerd or Kenneth Williams or the Steptoe actors was no laughing matter. Read more... |
The Miniaturist, BBC One review - a lovely supernatural soapThursday, 28 December 2017
Simon Schama called the Netherlands’ century of success an "embarrassment of riches". The thrust of Jessie Burton’s lavishly hyped debut novel The Miniaturist is that the Dutch felt guilty about their good fortune, and denied themselves the right to enjoy sugar, spice, and all things nice. The money went on surface things, on finery and furniture. Read more... |
Alan Partridge: Why, When, Where, How and Whom?, BBC Two review - a helping of Christmas PartridgeThursday, 28 December 2017
Over 25 years since his modest inception as a parody sports reporter, Alan Partridge has become one of comedy’s most enduring icons. With a new BBC series expected in 2018, we were treated to a tribute (or Partribute, if you will) to the impressive and varied career of Norfolk’s favourite fictional broadcaster. Read more... |
Little Women, BBC One review - life during wartime with the March sistersThursday, 28 December 2017
One of the much-hyped jewels in the crown of the family-friendly BBC holiday season is this new three-episode adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's much loved novel by Heidi Thomas, the writer of Call the Midwife. Read more... |
Doctor Who: Twice Upon a Time, BBC One review – a defiantly small and personal goodbyeTuesday, 26 December 2017
And so, with one last speech on the importance of kindness, Peter Capaldi and Steven Moffat bid farewell to the TARDIS. In their final Doctor Who episode, Twice Upon a Time subverted expectations with a small, sweet adventure which valued character above plot. Read more... |
300 Years of French and Saunders, BBC1 review - seasonal treat from the sketch duoTuesday, 26 December 2017
What joy that Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders were persuaded by the BBC to celebrate their 30 (ish) years as a comedy duo with this programme – and that this sweet confection was shown on Christmas Day. Read more... |
Maigret in Montmartre, ITV review - dirty deeds in clublandSunday, 24 December 2017
Whatever the Waitrose and Morrisons commercials are telling you, as far as TV schedulers are concerned ‘tis the season for murder. Thus a Christmas Maigret has become an instant tradition, with Rowan Atkinson reprising his performance as Georges Simenon’s dolorous detective. Read more... |
Peaky Blinders, Series 4 Finale, BBC Two review – Tommy faces his reckoningFriday, 22 December 2017
Luca Changretta got his just desserts, Alfie Solomons made a last gasp for the quiet life, and Thomas Shelby revealed his true enemy – Peaky Blinders wrapped up another exciting series in a high-octane and neat finale. Read more... |
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